At the Catholic church I grew up in there was a stewardship push called, Time,Talent and Treasure. It must have made quite an impression on me since 40 years later I can still remember the theme. The idea was to annually give some of all three to the church. The parish was probably most interested in treasure, but the idea was to donate all three if possible.
The poor widow puts her two coins in the treasury and Jesus remarks, “this poor widow put in more than all the other contributors to the treasury. For they have all contributed from their surplus wealth, but she, from her poverty, has contributed all she had, her whole livelihood."
More than money, time would be my most precious commodity. If I could somehow create more time in the day it would be such a gift for me. I don’t want time to do something spectacular for the world. I want more time so I can slow down and not feel like I’m rushing from one errand, phone call,or email to the next. I tell myself that with extra time I would spend more of it with God. My quiet time in prayer wouldn’t be left for the end of the day, but I know I would probably do exactly what I do now. Have the best of intentions to sit at the side of the bed and pray, but instead tell myself that I can pray just as well lying in bed with my eyes closed.
Yet, what also strikes me about Jesus’s remark about the two coins are his last three words,”her whole livelihood.” Maybe he means more than treasure, time or talent, perhaps he wants our entire lives to be turned towards him. It’s a big ask, a big commitment but we make many commitments. We commit to our families, friends, spouses, and communities. What would it be like to make our lives centered around Christ, to love everyone, even the person who didn’t vote for our candidate. What would our lives be like if we attempted to remember Christ intermittently during the day? We will fail many times at being Christ-centered, but as I remind my children, “Trying is never a failure, but failing to try is.”
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